Joseph Capizzi, associate professor, theology and religious studies, was quoted in an Aug. 19 Vox article about comments Pope Francis made regarding military actions in Iraq. He was quoted in a smiliar Aug. 22 National Catholic Register article.

What Pope Francis really said about the crisis in Iraq

... According to Joseph E. Capizzi, Associate Professor of Moral Theology at Catholic University of America, the Crusades were "fought to displace Muslim communities from their 'occupation' of the Holy Land." But the intervention Francis is calling for "is not to retake any land, nor is it limited to [the] protection of Christians," notes Capizzi, who is also a Research Fellow at the US Naval Academy. Rather, he says, what Francis wants is "protection for all those threatened by ISIS" — a category that includes people of various faith traditions. As Francis said, "there are many martyrs. But [in Iraq] there are men and women, religious minorities, not all of them Christian, and they are all equal before God."